Yarn (Cheat Sheet)

yarn init

Use yarn init to initialize a Node.js project and create a package.json file.

yarn add --dev and yarn remove

Use yarn add --dev to add a package to the devDependencies section of package.json. Or use yarn add -D as a shortcut.

How to use a local branch of an NPM project for testing purposes, e.g. a local branch of viem.

  1. Checkout the local branch of viem that you want to test (git checkout <branch>)

  2. Build the local branch of viem (using bun install and bun run build in this case)

  3. Navigate to the output directory in viem (in this case src)

  4. Run yarn link to create a symlink to the local branch of viem.

    This will create a symlink in the global node_modules directory, which can be used by other projects.

  5. Navigate to the project that will use the local branch of viem (in this case celo-org/txtypes )

  6. Run yarn link viem to create a symlink to the local branch of viem.

    This will create a symlink in the local node_modules directory, which will be used by the project. If you run yarn install in the project, it will use the local branch of viem instead of the version from npm. You can see this in the package.json file of the project, which will have a line like this:

    "viem": "link:../viem/src"

  7. Work and test with the local branch of viem in the project as though it was a published version of viem (celo-org/txtypes in this case)

  8. When you are done, run yarn unlink viem in the project (celo-org/txtypes in this case) to remove the symlink to the local branch of viem.

    This will remove the line from the package.json file of the project, and will remove the symlink from the local node_modules directory. If you run yarn install in the project, it will use the version of viem from npm again.

  9. Run yarn unlink in the output directory of viem (src in this case) to remove the symlink to the local branch of viem.

    This will remove the symlink from the global node_modules directory.

Global packages

Upgrade global package (example @celo/celocli)

Source: chatGPT

Upgrade @celo/celocli globally with yarn global add @celo/celocli@latest.

Check the version afterward with yarn global list @celo/celocli (or celocli --version).

Find path to global packages

Source: chatGPT

With nvm, each Node.js version has its own separate set of globally installed packages, so if you switch Node versions with nvm, the path to globally installed packages like celocli may change.

To find the installation paths of global packages for the current Node version, use:

$ npm root -g
/Users/arthur/.nvm/versions/node/v18.16.1/lib/node_modules
  • This command shows the directory where global libraries are installed by npm.
  • The output is the path to the node_modules directory where npm stores the globally installed packages.
  • For example, if npm root -g returns /usr/local/lib/node_modules, your global npm packages are located in this directory.
$ yarn global bin
/opt/homebrew/bin
  • This command shows the directory where global executable binaries installed by Yarn are located.
  • This is the directory you need to include in your PATH environment variable to be able to run globally installed Yarn packages from the command line.
  • The path provided by yarn global bin is not where Yarn’s global packages are stored in their entirety (like libraries and dependencies), but specifically where the executables (the command-line tools) are placed.

Key differences between npm root -g and yarn global bin. They are similar in that they both relate to the installation paths of global packages, but they serve slightly different purposes and can point to different locations.

  • Location of Installations: While npm installs both the libraries and their executables in the same node_modules directory, Yarn typically separates them. Yarn installs the actual package contents in a global location which is not directly exposed by yarn global bin and places the executables in the directory reported by yarn global bin.

  • Integration with the Shell: For the globally installed packages’ binaries to be accessible from the command line, the path provided by yarn global bin must be added to the PATH environment variable. npm, on the other hand, usually handles this automatically during Node.js installation, so global npm binaries are typically available in the command line without extra configuration.

  • Differences in Environment Configuration: Because of these differences, managing global packages with npm and Yarn might require different configurations in your shell environment. This is especially important when working in development environments where both package managers are used.

Source: chatGPT

For example, @celo/celocli v3.1.0 is installed, but version is not found:

$ yarn global add @celo/celocli@latest
# ...
success Installed "@celo/[email protected]" with binaries:
      - celocli
✨  Done in 50.26s.

$ celocli --version
 ›   Warning: @celo/celocli update available from 3.0.2 to 3.1.0.
@celo/celocli/3.0.2 darwin-arm64 node-v18.16.1

$ yarn global list @celo/celocli
yarn global v1.22.19
info "@celo/[email protected]" has binaries:
   - celocli
✨  Done in 2.32s.

It seems like there’s a discrepancy between the version of celocli installed via Yarn and the version that’s being invoked in the terminal. This issue can often arise due to path configurations and how different Node.js versions manage global packages.

Here are a few steps to diagnose and resolve this issue:

1. Check the PATH for Yarn’s Global Binaries

  • Yarn installs global binaries in a directory that may not be automatically included in your system’s PATH. Run yarn global bin to find out where Yarn’s global binaries are located.
  • Once you have this path, you need to ensure it’s included in your PATH environment variable. You can do this by adding a line to your ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc file, like so: 
    export PATH="$(yarn global bin):$PATH"
  • After modifying the file, reload your shell configuration with source ~/.zshrc or open a new terminal session.

2. Verify the Active Version of celocli

  • After updating the PATH, try running celocli --version again. If the PATH was the issue, it should now correctly show version 3.1.0.

3. Check for Multiple Installations

  • It’s possible that celocli is installed both via npm and Yarn, leading to version conflicts. You can check this by running npm list -g @celo/celocli and yarn global list @celo/celocli to see if the package is installed with both package managers.
  • If it’s installed with npm as well, you might consider uninstalling the npm version to avoid confusion. Use npm uninstall -g @celo/celocli to remove the npm-installed version.

4. Use nvm to Manage Node Versions

  • Since you’re using nvm, ensure you’re in the correct Node.js version where you installed the new celocli. Use nvm use 18.16.1 or the version you prefer, then try running celocli --version again.

5. Clear Any Caching

  • Sometimes, old versions of binaries can be cached in your shell. Clearing your shell’s cache can help. You can do this by running hash -r in your terminal.

6. Reinstall celocli

  • If none of the above solutions work, consider uninstalling celocli and then reinstalling it. First, uninstall it using Yarn: yarn global remove @celo/celocli. Then, reinstall it: yarn global add @celo/celocli@latest.